Big review of HTC Universal (i-mate JASJAR) :: Part 1

October 31, 2005 | Pavel Koza | format - Other (ar.) | viewed - 574x
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Big review of HTC Universal (i-mate JASJAR) :: Part 1

The HTC Universal is one of the most eagerly awaited devices of the past few months (and perhaps years) among all fans of pocketsize computers with a Microsoft operating system. Bill Gates himself used this device to present a new version of the OS called Windows Mobile 5, which is "faster, more stable, more intuitive, more sophisticated and user-friendlier" ^TM than all the previous version combined. This would have wreaked panic among piggybanks had they have access to online tech news. Few had expected that it would take another four months for the threat to materialise when the device eventually hit the shelves.

Like many other Pocket PCs from HTC, the HTC Universal, too, is marketed under several different brands. This is important, because vendors may offer slightly modified versions, differing in anything from accessories to pre-installed software. I had a model from i-mate name i-mate JASJAR. I would like to thank AH Mobile for lending me the device for review purposes.

What is in the box?

The contents of the package may seem quite low-profile considered the price. Although it includes everything you need to start using the device straight away yet a few more accessories would certainly be welcome. So, what is in the box?

HTC Universal
2x stylus
Pouch
Battery
Stereo headset
USB data cable
Travel AC adapter
1x application CD-ROM
User guide
Quick-start guide

Although the HTC Universal is very tempting, we will leave alone for now and take a look at the accessories first. The package contains two 95-millimetre styluses that are different from usual touch-screen writing aids - these are not round but rectangular. The main part is made of light metal, the tip and the top are plastic. The shape of the stylus is so intricate that its description is beyond my linguistic skills - please refer to a photo below. Even though it is not very long, I was much more comfortable with it than with the stylus supplied with MDA Compact. The difference is that the top of the Universal's stylus did not scratch my palm, unlike the Compact's.

I have somewhat mixed feelings about the pouch bundled with the device. It is hard to think of any innovative case considered the hinge-mounted display. However, the pouch shipped with the device is too simple by me. It is good one is included, nevertheless, most users will probably buy a different one or do without it. It is nothing more than a strip of leatherette forming a pocket, holding together by rubber strips on the sides. It is softly padded on the inside; large surfaces are reinforced with solid plates. It will prevent scratches when you carry the device in your briefcase rather than provide protection against brutal force. Some parts of the device are not protected at all, so the first fall on the ground may well be the last. Another big disadvantage is the absence of any belt clip or hook or something. It seems that HTC thinks the device's weight will deter anyone from carrying the device on the belt.

A stereo headset is supplied with all phone-enabled pocket computers. The one bundled with the HTC Universal is cut above the average. Its 3.5-millimetre jack is gold-plated; the standard type of connector makes it possible to use any other pair of headphones. The earplug-type headset includes a remote control with an integrated microphone, volume control, and call make/break button. The shape of the earplugs is unusual yet they feel quite comfortable in the ear.

The USB data cable is the most ordinary one you can imagine, with a standard connector on the one end to plug in the PC and a miniUSB connector on the other end to plug into the device, with 120 cm of insulated wires in between.

The AC adapter is relatively small, with a 175-cm cable. I had to use a mains plug adapter but the device should ship with standard plugs used in the given geography.

The rest of the package includes common items, such as an applications CD. No localisation SW is included but again, it should be present depending on the target market. A quick-start guide is there for impatient users, others can learn everything from a detailed 190-page manual. And that's about all of some interest in the box:)

Design

If you are considering HTC Universal as your next pocket device, you need to answer a fundamental question first: do you really want to have a pocket-size device that will not fit in any pocket? However funny the question may sound, the size of the device is a fact you either have to accept or look elsewhere. On the other hand, size is not the only parameter that matters. If you compare the device with other Pocket PCs, you need to bear in mind that although the operating system is the same as that in the MDA Compact or iPAQ, it is a completely different category. I hate that word but the HTC Universal is a full-fledged communicator.

The dimensions are exactly 5.00 x 3.19 x 0.98 inches / 81 x 127.7 x 25 millimetres and the device weighs 10 ounces / 285 grams. If you compare the HTC Universal with other VGA Pocket PCs, you will find that two of the three dimensions are not far from the average, the only big difference being the thickness (especially when considered it offers only one SD expansion slot and no CF slot). In To sum it up, the HTC Universal is quite bulky and heavy to carry around in the pocket.

Competing Pocket PC	Dimensions (in / mm)	Weight (oz / g)
Asus MyPal A730	4.65 x 2.87 x 0.67 118 x 73 x 17	6.0 170
Dell Axim X50v	4.68 x 2.87 x 0.67 119 x 73 x 17	6.3 179
FSC Pocket LOOX 720	4.80 x 2.83 x 0.59 122 x 72 x 15	6.0 170 (approx.)
HP iPAQ hx4700	5.16 x 3.03 x 0.59 131 x 77 x 15	6.6 187
i-mate JASJAR	5.00 x 3.19 x 0.98 127 x 81 x 25	10.0 285
T-Mobile MDA Compact	4.25 x 2.28 x 0.70 108 x 58 x 18	5.3 150
T-Mobile MDA II	5.12 x 2.76 x 0.74 130 x 70 x 19	6.5 185

Considered the large size, it is good that the designers abandoned traditional silver colour and opted for glossy dark grey instead. t is a mater of discussion whether the colour makes it appear smaller but I like it better than the silver colour of Compact, anyway.

It is somewhat more difficult to describe the shape of this device than that of other Pocket PCs. This is because, as you may know, the HTC Universal can change its configuration. The device comprises two parts joined by a hinge - a larger part with a keyboard and a smaller part with a display that can rotate around two axes: around the hinge and a swivel built in the middle of the hinge. This makes it possible to use the device in two modes. You can either open the display and use the device as a miniature laptop, controlling it mainly by the keyboard, or turn the display around the swivel and close down to the main part to create a rather bulky Pocket PC that you can control using a touch display and stylus. I believe a series of photographs can tell more than a thousand words, so take a look.

When the device is closed, its two part are not fastened together, so it is quick and easy to open the display. The display can be left in a range of positions but won't work with the stylus properly if it is not open fully - if the upper part is not fully open, it will yield under the pressure of the stylus until it reaches the end position. In this position, the display works in the landscape mode, creating a perfect impression of a "bonsai laptop".

If we turn the display vertically by 180 degrees and fold up the device, the Universal will become a classic Pocket PC. The display will automatically switch to the portrait mode and we can work. Over the few days I tested the device I could not get accustomed to this mode because of the device's weight, which is 300 grams. I should start working out:), to say nothing about female users. I let my wife try the device and its compatibility with her hand was yet lower. One would need to get used to but having used MDA Compact for several months, the difference is really big.

Moving on to design and we start with the device when closed. To make it clear, the device is lying on the table, with the inscription i-mate on the top facing the observer. Besides the inscription, there is only a loudspeaker on the top side. When we turn the device, we will find the lens of the better of the device's two integrated cameras, a high-power led that acts as a flash, and a cover of the battery compartment and SIM card slot. In order to prevent sliding of the device on the desk and scratches on rough surfaces, there is a rubber pad in each corner.

The front is a feast for symmetry lovers, with two loudspeaker grills, three buttons, a volume slider and an infrared sensor. Two out of the three buttons arte user-definable. The first one controls the camera, i.e. launches the camera application and releases the shutter. The second one starts sound recording and enables voice control of the device. The third one toggles backlight.

The right- and left-hand sides are less populated with controls, the right being totally bare, the left hosting an SD slot and the power switch.

From this view, the rear somewhat resembles a full-fledged laptop computer with a headphones jack, a soft reset button, miniUSB connector for the synchronisation cable or power cable, two phone control buttons, two capped connectors for external antennas (GSM and WCDMA, respectively) and the stylus shaft.

That's not everything, of course. When we unfold the device, we can see another two large areas full of interesting elements. Most notably, it is the base part with a keyboard - more on that later. There are two rubber stumps in the right and left bottom corners that hold the display and keyboard at a sufficient distance to prevent the two parts from scratching each other. There are two curved LED indicators at the hinge. Both of them are two-coloured and inform about status and events: the left-hand one blinks green or blue to indicate wireless activity, while the right-hand one blinks green or orange to notify of alarms and appointments and charging. A microphone is hidden in a small notch on the left edge next to the green call answer button. There is yet another element in the area above the keyboard worth attention: it is located above the i-mate inscription and looks like a soft reset button but in reality, it is a light sensor that activates red backlight of the keyboard whenever it comes to the conclusion that it is too dark around for comfortable typing.

Finally, lets take a look at the last part we have not mentioned yet. the inner side of the upper part. It is dominated by a VGA display 3.6 inch in diameter. To the left of the display, we discover a small hole - a speaker for the phone. On the opposite side is a cursorpad with a separate central button and a miniature camera for videocalls. The cursorpad deserves more attention for several reasons, the main being its unsuitability for gaming: it is a standalone control (user-definable buttons are somewhere else), and it supports only the four main directions, no diagonals. Speaking about buttons, I should add that they can be locked to prevent accidental presses.

Overall, I consider the HTC Universal as very well designed, especially in this dark grey variant. It is assembled well and does not look like the manufacturer economised on materials, even though the body of the devices is almost completely made of plastic but a few small parts. The biggest question is if the hinge and swivel are durable enough of in the long run or if going to service will become a new pastime of users. It is impossible to find out in just a few days, so I have no answer to that question.

Keyboard

HTC Universal is not the first Pocket PC with an integrated QWERTY keyboard. However, apart from dead-end Handheld PCs, this is the one of the best keyboards ever implemented in MS OS-based mobile devices, or perhaps the very best. I believe it is a microswitch keyboard rather than a membrane one. An advantage of microswitches is longer travel, better response and therefore better experience of typing. A disadvantage is relatively noisy clicking, which some may find disturbing, especially in quiet environments (e.g. you wife trying to fall asleep:). The keyboard consists of 62 buttons arranged in six rows. Normal buttons are 9.5 wide and 8.5 millimetre long but there are some keys of different size. First of all, it is the entire top row, buttons along the margins (the shape of the keyboard is not rectangular but I-do-not-know-how-to-describe-angular - see photos). Spacing between the keys is immeasurable by ordinary means, it is just tiny. The F and J key have the usual stops that make it easier to type without looking at the keyboard.

The keyboard includes two types of keys - system/function and alphanumeric. There are 12 system and function keys, including a red and a green key that control the phone (call make and break), two program control keys (the two horizontal lines whose press is equivalent to tapping on the left- or right-hand side of the bar), an OK key (equivalent to tapping the upper right corner of the screen), a function key for typing the secondary character (red characters in the upper left corner of alphanumeric keys), a Win button to invoke the Start menu, a SYM button that makes it possible to type accented characters, such as "Ç" (type C and then press repeatedly to switch between various accents; however, some letters of the Czech alphabet are not supported - a task for localisers), and 4 application buttons (two of them are user definable, mail and Pocket Internet Explorer cannot be changed).

I should not forget about red backlight which is both appealing and efficient. When the sensor detects bad light conditions, it will activate the backlight upon a press of a button. The Universal then looks like a device from a sci-fi film:) The red light is not overly intensive, so it does not become obtrusive even when typing for a long time. It is possible to set for how long the backlight will shine or deactivate it completely.

My real-life experience is mostly positive. When I laid the device on the table, I could type with four fingers quite comfortably. Yet I found it much more convenient to hold the device in both hands and type with the thumbs as I could reach all the keys without any problems. I chatted over ICQ and typed text messages this way. It was significantly more comfortable than with the Compact. I would not probably type the whole review this way but it was perfect for shorter texts. However, it is not all praise: there are a few minor issues, too. One of them is the presence of just one SHIFT key (located on the left). If you want to type capital A or Z, you need to reach it with the other hand. The clicking of the keyboard is tolerable but those who prefer an absolute quiet may find it annoying. Finally, the spacebar occupies the same space as two ordinary keys. Unfortunately, it has two microswitches, which is why I sometimes accidentally typed two spaces instead of one. The keyboard is generally very good and surely competitive in its category.

Parameters

Whether you like the HTC Universal or not, you cannot deny that it is a feature-packed device with excellent parameters that deserves proper attention. On the other hand, it is quite an expensive piece of hardware, so a certain degree of exclusivity was expected. That is why I ma going to be slightly stricter in my assessment because when you are buying a device at a price of two or three standard Pocket PCs, you have the right to demand as little compromising as possible. Let's take a look now at the technical specifications.

The very first one suggests that the HTC Universal does not always feature state-of-the-art technology despite the high price. Naturally, it depends on the point of view, but certain things are undisputable. For instance, the processor is Intel Bulverde 520 MHz. Why not 624 MHz? I cannot think of any reason than price for not having the very best processor in this kind of device. Lower consumption is no longer an acceptable excuse because processor speed adjustment utilities are commonly used to reduce the consumption even for the fastest processors (however, Phone Edition Pocket PCs from HTC usually lack such a utility and the Universal is no exception). The same applies to available memory. The new Windows Mobile 5 radically changed the philosophy of memory usage, so a combination of 64 MB RAM and 128 MB of FlashROM no longer looks so impressive. The user can access none of the RAM, which is used only by running applications. What the users can access is 128 MB of FlashROM or rather what is left of it after the system and bonus applications bite off several tens of megabytes of it. The bonus applications are stored on a hidden partition occupying a large part of the ROM and they install automatically upon a HW reset to take up yet more space. Instead of the promising 192 MB of memory, the unfortunate user will be left with less than 40 MB of storage for data and applications, which is not very much.

The different way Windows Mobile 5 uses memory also brings about changes in the way a hard reset (i.e. restoration of factory-gate defaults) is performed. Instead of pressing a certain combination of buttons or letting the battery run completely dry, you have to run a utility called Clear Storage that will wipe out the memory completely after multiple confirms by the user.

The display is another part that can be viewed from two different angles. On the one hand, it is a quality transflexive TFT display with a resolution of 640x480 pixels, capable of displaying 65 thousand colours simultaneously. The diagonal is 3.6 inch, which is roughly 91.4 mm. Backlight can be adjusted at ten levels separately for battery and mains operation; there is no automatic backlight control. Photos look nice on the display and even though the backlight is not as bright as in the iPAQ hx4700 (in the preview I claimed the opposite but I probably set lower than maximum intensity in the iPAQ by accident), it definitely cannot be called a weakness. As for the white colour, it seems slightly better than in the iPAQ but the difference is really minute - whereas iPAQ offers warm colours, the HTC offers cold colours). Looking at the display from a point of view of a demanding customer, we have to ask why it is just 3.6 inches? Why is it not bigger? Why are there so thick black margins? These are not major issues, though, and normal users (read: not so insanely nitpicking:) will be satisfied.

The Universal's audio features are quite good. Unlike most phone-enabled Pocket PCs, the HTC Universal integrates not one or two loudspeakers but three, a microphone and headphones output. In the front view, we can see two loudspeakers hidden behind oval grills - welcome to the stereo! The maximum volume is absolutely sufficient, which you will appreciate especially when using the phone in the hands-free mode. By contrast, the phone speaker is not as good. While the maximum volume is fine (but could be higher), the sound quality deteriorates from medium level on, which is extremely annoying. The microphone is perfect for close-range recording and very good for recording ambient sound. The recording quality can be improved by activating automatic sensitivity adjustment. Finally, the headphones output: I appreciate the fact that even though you need a headset with microphone to make phone calls, the connector is a standard 3.5 mm jack allowing you to use any headphones you like if you just want to listen to music. When I used quality headphones, the sound was perfect with virtually no noise. There is no software equalizer but some MP3 players include one and in fact, you can easily do without it. The headset supplied with the device is not as good, either in clarity or volume, but still significantly better than common "earplugs".

The Universal offers excellent connectivity. USB 1.1 is the primary connection with the desktop PC. Despite earlier speculations, the device does not support the USB Host functionality for connecting other USB devices to it. As to wireless connections, the device offers a fast infrared port (FIR, up to 4 Mbps), which is fast not only by specification but also in real life. The transmission speed reached 125 KB/s when copying to the device and as much as 166 KB/s in the opposite direction. This may have been due to faster communication over ActiveSync in the new version of the operating system. Anyhow it is an excellent result and the infrared port can be used for copying large files!

More sophisticated wireless connections include Bluetooth and WiFi, both of which the device integrates. Bluetooth is version 1.1 with a driver and control application from Microsoft. That's life... Their features are limited but the most important ones are present and work well. I tested the Bluetooth with GPS Navilock BT-338 as well as wireless headset Jabra BT-200. I also tried transferring files between the HTC Universal and HP iPAQ hx4700 and encountered absolutely no problems. The same applies to the device's WiFi module (IEEE 802.11b). I tested it with my home WiFi router Asus and could connect with the WPA-PSK authentication and TKIP encryption. I even used it to make my very first call over Skype:) One thing that I did not like was the fact that all the wireless modules are controlled using one application, Wireless Manager. The application is not bad as such but you need at least one tap more than necessary to activate BT... More on the phone module later.

Last but not least, we should mention the battery, whose life is a very important quantity. Considered the new approach to memory, the battery can be drained completely. That is also why there is no backup battery. The device's only battery is a Li-Pol accumulator with a capacity of 1620 mAh. The device can charge also over the cable. I could test the device for just a few days, so I cold perform only a few battery tests. Unfortunately, Spb Benchmark did not work properly with WM5, so the results are a little distorted. In general, the device an keep going for 4 to 6 hours under full load. I won't elaborate now and will try to borrow the device again in the future to test the battery properly when there is an updated version of Spb Benchmark compatible with WM5.